A prison guard who wanted to spend his entire working life with inmates has been killed on duty after only six months in the job.

Department of Corrections bosses say staff safety is paramount following criticisms made in the wake of the death of slain prison officer Jason Palmer.

A man's attack on his partner was described as domestic violence of the worst kind by the judge who jailed him.

A police investigation into the assault on a four-year-old in a Whakatane park has resulted in the arrest of a 21-year-old local man.

The Deputy Police Commissioner has dismissed the idea that police had failed in their "duty of care" toward Navtej Singh.

A High Court jury has found Christopher Shadrock guilty of murder after he struck down Joanne Wang in a Manukau carpark.

It may be a race between police and Black Power gang members as to who catches a man who assaulted a four-year-old boy because he was wearing a red shirt.

A judge has ruled it would be unjust to sentence a man found guilty of murdering a 14-year-old boy to the usual statutory minimum jail term of 17 years.

The prime suspect in the murder of NZ-born nurse Michelle Beets has gone public to profess his innocence.

A four-year-old was assaulted in a Whakatane park simply for wearing a red shirt, the colour associated with the Mongrel Mob.

Two men charged with assault after the death of a 23-year-old man in Hastings last night will appear in court today.